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Greek studio KLab Architecture created this pharmacy in Athens by wrapping a round facade punctured by Braille lettering over the existing octagonal building, with plants occupying the space in between.

The two levels of the Placebo Pharmacy are linked by a long ramp that curls round one side of the circular plan.

A shop and dispensing chemist are housed on the ground floor with offices and a surgery for visiting practitioners above.

The design process for this large (600m2) super-local pharmacy forced us to shift our viewpoint and come up with a virtual building—a placebo pharmacy. The octagonal shape of the existing structure was re-formed into a cylinder in order to create a spiral which seeks to converse with the rapid motion on Vouliagmenis Avenue, the urban artery on which the building stands.

The panels of the façade are perforated using Braille, which both alludes to the system’s use on pharmaceutical packaging and boosts visibility by allowing the light to find its way into the interior. The new facade also protects the interior while acting as a lure for passers-by. Inside, the product display mirrors the circular frontage, while a ramp up to the upper level extends the dynamism of the exterior spiral into the interior space.

The Pharmacy is arranged over two floors, the ground floor being the primary shop space with the upper mezzanine floor consisting of ancillary office space used as a temporary surgery for visiting health professionals.

The pharmacy is arranged in plan in a radial pattern with the main cashiers desk acting as the focal point. The product displays fan out from this focal point giving the cashier the ability to view the whole pharmacy from this central area. The drug dispensary, preparation areas and toilets are also arranged off this radial pattern. This pattern gives a natural flow to the space and allows light deep into the center of the plan at all times throughout the day.

Comments

Am I the only one curious about what the braille 'text' in the facade actually says? ;)

yuc

recipes, perhaps...

shyra

ask a blind person with huge hands.

Perrine Montfort

I don't know if it is depressing because it is a pharmacy or because of the artificial lights and reflection of the floor

joseppi

this is in poor taste, but i think braille in the facade is ironic

fjrshnnt

eeee i saw one like this in shanghai expo 2010.

Hercule Poirot

What's in a name. Placebo : effects without substance.

Ebru Kandilci

thats really impressive...a new approach to pharmacies.im also curious about the text on the facade...

Anon

puts my neighborhood CVS to shame.
greece has some pretty impressive small-scale architecture all over the place.

edward44

Does the shocking profit margins on pharmaceutics extend to retail as well. This is a really lavish use of space. But looks great!

Onelab

Too bad there are no plans or sections. This would help more in understanding the building. Using braille in the facade just because there is braille on the medicines is farfetched. It could just as easy have been the barcodes on the medicines or the brand names.The last one would actually have been fun! A reference to branding you see on the facades of clothing stores. Too bad that a lot of architects or photographers think that a building looks better without their users in it. In all an ok building but trying a litle bit too much to be hip.

Nuno

could be nice.... but look too much similar to the BIG projet (denmark pavillion at Shangai Expo)....